Preview — The Cowboy Comes Home by Patricia Thayer

Home...Single mom Jess Calhoun had learned the hard way not to trust a man in a Stetson; her young son's dad was long gone. But that doesn't stop Jess from noticing good-lookin', sweet-talkin' cowboy Johnny Jameson swagger into town. He's as wild and untamed as the stallions he trains.

...is where the girl who's stolen his heart is!The attraction between them is as fiery as

Home...Single mom Jess Calhoun had learned the hard way not to trust a man in a Stetson; her young son's dad was long gone. But that doesn't stop Jess from noticing good-lookin', sweet-talkin' cowboy Johnny Jameson swagger into town. He's as wild and untamed as the stallions he trains.

...is where the girl who's stolen his heart is!The attraction between them is as fiery as a Texan summer and Johnny finds himself questioning whether he could finally put down roots - in Larkville, a place where two very special people have taken hold of his heart.

Community Reviews

This was a pretty good book. I'm going with 3 1/2 stars. I liked the characters and the plot. There were emotions, good characters, some steaminess, plenty of touching moments, some tough parts, good friends and town feel (minus the snobby family ;) ), and a good ending. I would like to read more in this series and see what all happens and get to know more of the characters. I had fun reading this, although it does feel more like a chick-flick kinda read. Good for the ice-cream, comfy pj's, rainThis was a pretty good book. I'm going with 3 1/2 stars. I liked the characters and the plot. There were emotions, good characters, some steaminess, plenty of touching moments, some tough parts, good friends and town feel (minus the snobby family ;) ), and a good ending. I would like to read more in this series and see what all happens and get to know more of the characters. I had fun reading this, although it does feel more like a chick-flick kinda read. Good for the ice-cream, comfy pj's, rainy-day book. Something I wouldn't mind reading again. This was written well too, so that I was feeling the characters and invested in the outcome. Loved Brady, sooo cute and grown-up at the same time. The ending definitely had me hangin' a little wondering what happens next...What a whopper of a find! Enjoy!...more

When I finished The Cowboy Comes Home, the only thing I could think was “Darn you, Harlequin!!” Why? It’s the first book in the Larkville Legacy series, and being anal about reading series, I now want to read the rest of the books. When I decided to read this title, I was not aware that it is part of a series; instead, I saw the happy family enjoying a trail ride together and I just had to read it. The hero is a horse trainer (wait, didn’t I just read a HQ Blaze about a horse trainer?3.5/4 stars

When I finished The Cowboy Comes Home, the only thing I could think was “Darn you, Harlequin!!” Why? It’s the first book in the Larkville Legacy series, and being anal about reading series, I now want to read the rest of the books. When I decided to read this title, I was not aware that it is part of a series; instead, I saw the happy family enjoying a trail ride together and I just had to read it. The hero is a horse trainer (wait, didn’t I just read a HQ Blaze about a horse trainer?!), and the heroine has a shop that sells baked goods (wait! Didn’t that same HQ Blaze feature a heroine who is a cook?). Despite these similarities, the books are nothing alike.

Jess is a single mom, and she is still grieving the death of her father, a wealthy rancher. Her brothers and sister are off doing their own thing, so she is temporarily in charge of the Double Bar C, even though she doesn’t want to run the ranch. She has a business of her own to fret about, and having a young son keeps her on her toes. When Johnny Jameson swaggers to town, she’s a bit dismayed. She is instantly attracted to this sexy cowboy, and her son, Brady, takes a shine to him too. After having her heartbroken and being left pregnant by her ex boyfriend, she has sworn off of cowboys. They never stay in one place for long, and she knows that once Johnny finishes training Storm, the horse her father had so many hopes pinned on, he’ll be gone too. Johnny’s motto is that all he needs is his truck, trailer, and his horse, and he’s a happy guy. He moves from one training job to the next, never staying in one place for longer than he has to. Once he’s finished training, he’s gone, and he doesn’t see that ever changing.

I found Johnny an interesting character because he is carrying around so much baggage. It’s a good thing he has that horse trailer, because he needs the extra room to drag his unhappy past around with him. He never knew his father, and his efforts to track him down yielded nothing. The older man wanted nothing to do with his son, and every lead Johnny followed to find him ended in a dead end. His mother wandered from town to town, never staying in one place for long. When she settled down with a man who beat her, Johnny had had enough. He packed his meager belongings and hit the road at 14 and never returned. The kindness of an old horse trainer gave him the skills he needed to feed himself, and he has made a name for himself because of his gift with horses.

Jess is reluctant to give in to her attraction for Johnny, and with a young child to care for, her reluctance made perfect sense. Brady misses his grandfather terribly, and with her brothers gone, there are no other men in Brady’s life. When he sets aside his fear of horses and asks Johnny to teach him how to ride, Jess realizes how much her son needs a stable man in his life, which makes her even more wary of her feelings for Johnny. He is a sexy, charming guy, though, and soon both of them are in over their heads, and while Jess has accepted that he won’t be there for long, the reality of him packing up and high-tailing it out of town tears both her and Brady into pieces. Dumb cowboy! You promised to help the kid with his mutton bustin’! So much for the cowboy code!

I enjoyed this very quick read and found the resolution very satisfying. The last chapter was perfect, in fact, and had me convinced that Jess, Johnny, and Brady will all have a HEA. Now, let me get back to the darn you, Harlequin bit. The epilogue came out of nowhere for me, because I don’t really pay attention to plot descriptions, and I don’t find that Harlequin communicates effectively when they introduce most of their series. They just put a little graphic on the cover, which I don’t always see because I read all of their titles digitally. The covers are all pretty generic, and I don’t pay much attention to them (unless there is a horse on the cover, which guarantees that I will add it to my wish list) . So when I read the epilogue, and it ended on a bit of a cliffhanger, I was compelled to immediately purchase Slow Dance with the Sheriff, even though I won’t be able to read it for a while. So, I guess Harlequin’s devious plan to make me purchase more of their books worked – AGAIN! I especially enjoy their series that span several months and have several authors contributing titles to the continuity. I am thinking of tackling The Harts of the Rodeo, too, which is being released under the Harlequin American Romance line. Have you read any multi-author series? Would you recommend any?

4 STARS The Cowboy Comes Home is the first book in the The Larkville Legacy. This book is a fast read. I think they have a good start to the series. Jess Calhoun is a single mother of 5 year old Brady is a Cute kid who starts being afraid of horses even though he lives on a ranch. Jess started her own business on the ranch of a bakery and now with the loss of Clay and her brother is absencent she is also running the ranch. Clay and Brady were really close and Clay had told him about the man who4 STARS The Cowboy Comes Home is the first book in the The Larkville Legacy. This book is a fast read. I think they have a good start to the series. Jess Calhoun is a single mother of 5 year old Brady is a Cute kid who starts being afraid of horses even though he lives on a ranch. Jess started her own business on the ranch of a bakery and now with the loss of Clay and her brother is absencent she is also running the ranch. Clay and Brady were really close and Clay had told him about the man who is going to help train his horse. Johnny Jameson arrives on the Calhoun ranch and sees a horse in trouble and stops to help. Then Jessie comes and lends a hand. He tells her he has come because Clay hired him to help train an out of control stallion, Night Storm. That was months ago he finshed the job he was on then came here. The ranch forman knew Clay had hired Johnny and even Brady knew he was the one who could help Night Storm. Clay had a rough childhood. He had got close to being part of a family and it did not work out. So He goes from ranch to ranch to train horses. Never staying long so he won't get attached. Brady knew that Jonny could help the horse and even help him learn to ride a horse. He wants to always be where Johnny is. He trusts Johnny fast because his grandpa talked about him. Johnny really did not have much experience with kids, but Brady got to him. He would help Brady ride his new pony and be ready for the little kids rodeo. At the end of the book a letter is found and its been unopened for years and leaves a mystery to set up the other books in the series. I was given this ebook to read in exchange of honest review from Netgalley. 06/26/2012 PUB Harlequin Romance ...more

I really, really loved this fabulous book! A story about Johnny who simply put is a good looking smooth talking cowboy that will never put down roots. And the man is incredible with horses (really adored that part). He takes jobs when he needs them and goes from town to town,training horses everywhere.

This profession takes brings him to fun,sweet,loving single mom Jess. She has been burned by love before and the Stetson wearing father of her child has lReviewd by: HarlequinJunkie Romance Reviews

I really, really loved this fabulous book! A story about Johnny who simply put is a good looking smooth talking cowboy that will never put down roots. And the man is incredible with horses (really adored that part). He takes jobs when he needs them and goes from town to town,training horses everywhere.

This profession takes brings him to fun,sweet,loving single mom Jess. She has been burned by love before and the Stetson wearing father of her child has long been gone never to return.When the two meet is where the book really took off for me. The attraction and emotions between J and J (as I like to call them) was beautifully written.

The author incorporated facts about horses into the book that I never knew about and made the read all the more interesting. The manner in which the author protrayed just how powerful the love of a good woman can be and that it can make you "come home" was gorgeous! And the landscape BEAUTIFUL!

I recommend this one for every reader of romance and even if you don't like books about cowboys and horses and the Stetsons, after reading this one trust me you will be coming back for more....more

Good book. Jess Calhoun is raising her son by herself. She'd fallen in love with a cowboy who didn't stick around when he found out she was pregnant, and now she is very cautious about trusting any man. Johnny has come to the ranch to train a stallion belonging to her late father. Johnny has always been a rolling stone, going where he wanted to and not settling down anywhere. But he has found that being around Jess and Brady makes him want things he has never wanted before. His attraction to JesGood book. Jess Calhoun is raising her son by herself. She'd fallen in love with a cowboy who didn't stick around when he found out she was pregnant, and now she is very cautious about trusting any man. Johnny has come to the ranch to train a stallion belonging to her late father. Johnny has always been a rolling stone, going where he wanted to and not settling down anywhere. But he has found that being around Jess and Brady makes him want things he has never wanted before. His attraction to Jess is strong and he finds thoughts of forever keep sneaking into his mind. And though he has never been comfortable around children before, Brady makes him think about being part of a family. But he is afraid that he can't be what they need and keeps telling Jess that he won't stay, that moving on is what he does. I really loved Johnny and how good he was with Brady. You can tell a lot about a man by the way he behaves with kids, and Brady knew he could trust Johnny. I loved the part at the rodeo when Johnny came back. The epilogue did a good job of setting up the next book....more

My second Patricia Thayer book. I enjoyed the first, Wedding Bells at Wandering Creek Ranch, but I can't say the same for this one. I didn't believe in the hero and heroine's attraction - perhaps because the book is heavy with 'tell' and light on the 'show' - and the hero's lust without consquences wasn't so deftly handled as it could have been. I hung on to the end of the book to get the link in to the rest of the series.

I hope this was all a result of a tight deadline, being the first in the sMy second Patricia Thayer book. I enjoyed the first, Wedding Bells at Wandering Creek Ranch, but I can't say the same for this one. I didn't believe in the hero and heroine's attraction - perhaps because the book is heavy with 'tell' and light on the 'show' - and the hero's lust without consquences wasn't so deftly handled as it could have been. I hung on to the end of the book to get the link in to the rest of the series.

I hope this was all a result of a tight deadline, being the first in the series, and not indicative of Ms Thayer's body of work. Second in the series is Nikki Logan's Slow Dance with the Sheriff and hopefully that will bring the Larkville series back on track....more

This book tell the story of Jessica who is attracted to a horse trainer; Johnny. Being deserted by the father of her child, she have a distrust over cowboy; yet she could not stop herself from being attracted to him. Johnny on the other hand, know that a relationship is not for him and is doom from the beginning if there is one. Yet, he could not help himself from wanting one with Jess and Blady. The author bring the issue of commitment between two persons and only love can actually make the comThis book tell the story of Jessica who is attracted to a horse trainer; Johnny. Being deserted by the father of her child, she have a distrust over cowboy; yet she could not stop herself from being attracted to him. Johnny on the other hand, know that a relationship is not for him and is doom from the beginning if there is one. Yet, he could not help himself from wanting one with Jess and Blady. The author bring the issue of commitment between two persons and only love can actually make the commitment between two persons work!...more

Originally born and raised in Muncie, Indiana, Patricia Thayer was the second of eight children. She attended Ball State University, and soon afterward she headed West. Over the years, she’s made frequent visits back to the Midwest, trying to keep up with her family’s numerous weddings and births.

Patricia has called Orange County, California home for many years. She not only enjoys the warm climaOriginally born and raised in Muncie, Indiana, Patricia Thayer was the second of eight children. She attended Ball State University, and soon afterward she headed West. Over the years, she’s made frequent visits back to the Midwest, trying to keep up with her family’s numerous weddings and births.

Patricia has called Orange County, California home for many years. She not only enjoys the warm climate, but also the company and support of other published authors in the local writer’s organization. For the past eighteen years, she had the unwavering support and encouragement of her critique group. It’s a sisterhood like no other.

When not working on a story, you might find her traveling the United States and Europe, taking in the scenery and doing story research while thoroughly enjoying herself accompanied by, Steve, her husband for over 35 years. Together, they have three grown sons and four grandsons. As she calls them, her own true life heroes. On rare days off from writing, you might catch her at Disneyland, spoiling those grandkids rotten! She also volunteers for the Grandparent Autism Network.

Patricia has written for over 20 years and has authored over 35 books for Silhouette and Harlequin. She has been nominated for both the National Reader’s Choice Award and the prestigious RITA. Her book, Nothing Short of a Miracle won a Romantic Times Reviewer’s Choice award.

She has been a guest reader at elementary schools and lectured aspiring authors. A long time member of Romance Writers of America, she has served as President and held many other board positions for her local chapter in Orange County. She’s a firm believer in giving back. ...more